Description HOKUSUI: A RARE WOOD NETSUKE OF A SNAIL WITH YOUNGBy Hokusui, signed Hokusui 北水 with kakihanJapan, 19th century, Edo period (1615-1868)Of appealingly compact form, well carved as a snail emerging from its shell with its optical tentacles placed on the shell, a small snail creeping along over its back, the underside and side of the shell with large himotoshi, the underside with the boldly incised signature HOKUSUI with a kakihan.LENGTH 3.5 cmCondition: Very good condition with minor surface wear.Provenance: Ex-collection Zuckerkandl. Ex-collection Teddy Hahn, Darmstadt, acquired from Robert Fleischel, Tokyo, in February 2004.The output of this artist is rarely seen and little is known of him or his work. A study of a snail signed Shoboken Hokusui is however mentioned in Meinertzhagen, Frederick / Lazarnick, George (1986) MCI, Part A, p. 185.